1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method of producing adhesive labels and to a device for producing adhesive labels, and relates more particularly to a method of producing adhesive labels that forms an adhesive portion on the recording paper after printing, and to a printer.
2. Related Art
Label paper that has labels with an adhesive surface affixed to a web liner is typically used to produce adhesive labels. Because the web liner portion of such label paper becomes waste once the labels are removed, linerless label paper that omits the web liner is also used. Japanese Unexamined Patent Appl. Pub. JP-A-2003-089247, for example, teaches a printer that prints on the printing surface of linerless label paper, the back side of which is coated with adhesive, and cuts off the printed portion to produce a label.
One type of linerless label paper is coated on the reverse side with a heat sensitive adhesive layer that is activated by heat. Japanese Unexamined Patent Appl. Pub. JP-A-2004-035043 teaches a printer that prints on heat-activated adhesive label paper (also called “delayed tack” paper), and can activate the adhesive by heating the label paper with a heater after cutting the label paper with an automatic paper cutter.
Because the adhesive surface of the label paper used in JP-A-2003-089247 is exposed, the printing surface is coated with a release agent when the label paper is wound into a roll for easy loading into the printer so that the labels can be easily peeled. As a result, when the label paper pulled from the roll is set and conveyed through the paper path inside the printer while printing, the release agent can separate from the printing surface and collect on the printhead, possibly resulting in printing problems. Adhesion of the adhesive on the printhead, paper path, paper cutter, or other parts can also lead to paper jams. To prevent such problems, the printhead, paper path, paper cutter, and other parts must be given an anti-stick surface treatment or an adhesive removal mechanism must be provided. Alternatively, regular maintenance is required to remove any accumulated adhesive or release agent buildup. As a result, device cost increases or the cost of maintenance increases.
When heat-activated adhesive label paper is used and the adhesive is activated after cutting a label as described in JP-A-2004-035043, a relatively large heating mechanism and power supply must be provided to heat and activate the adhesive inside the printer. This increases device size and cost.
Linerless label paper such as described in JP-A-2003-089247 and JP-A-2004-035043 eliminates the backing liner but is still more expensive than plain paper because it is precoated with adhesive. In addition, because the adhesive layer is formed over the entire reverse side of the label paper, adhesive is wasted when adhesive is only needed on part of the label. The cost of producing the adhesive labels is therefore higher than necessary.